UNU-IIST reaffirms host country commitment

A delegation from the UNU Institute for Software Technology (UNU-IIST) visited the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People’s Republic of China on 15 December 2010.

The two sides affirmed a commitment to forging a closer bond aimed at supporting economic and technology development in Macao and Mainland China.

The UNU-IIST delegation, represented by Director Peter Haddawy and Senior Research Fellow Zhiming Liu, was warmly received by Mr. Kou Ming, Assistant Director-General of the Economic Affairs Department, and Mr. Dong Zhifeng, Director of the Economic Affairs Department.

Prof. Haddawy introduced the strong and unique position of the United Nations University as both an academic institution and a part of the United Nations.

“Given the special position and superior reputation of the institute, we invariably collaborate with the top universities in the world and promote Macao in turn”, said Prof. Haddawy. “UNU-IIST, for example, is establishing a joint Ph.D. programme with the University of Pisa in Italy, which is one of the strongest universities in computer science in Europe.”

Mr. Kou Ming said that he believed UNU-IIST can perform a more crucial role in the development of Macao and China, and assured the delegation that the Liaison Office will assist as a channel of communication.

“The Macau SAR government is aware of the overwhelming weight carried by the gaming industry in the local economy, whereas we hope the rest can grow too,” Mr. Kou Ming said. “There are some 30,000 small and medium-size enterprises in Macao which have the potential to grow regionally, especially in the Pearl River Delta. What they need now is an improvement on skill and management; to this end, I believe UNU-IIST can provide talents and technology.”